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japanjazz-blog · 7 years ago

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It all started when...

“Have you ever heard of InuYasha?” my new friend asked me in 7th grade while we warmed up our clarinets in band class.

Ah yes, InuYasha. How so many anime interests begin. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I could not comprehend the hours that I would spend binge-watching Evangelion, or how many times I would sneak downstairs to watch the newest episode of Trigun. I remember being upset that Princess Mononoke didn’t record, and my father standing in front of the television with his hands on his hips, a concerned look on his face.

“Enough is enough, Maria. You’re obsessed with this shit. It’s a damn cartoon. You’re getting too old for this.”

Little did my dad know, that was only the beginning.

I could not get enough of this weird thing called “anime”. Why are there eyes so big? Why do all of the girls talk like mice? Why is everything so shiny and overly cute? And why am I crushing on animated men with impossibly good hair?

(Actually, now that I’m here in real life Tokyo, I will say that many Japanese men do have amazing hair. But I digress.)

The worst part was when the friend who got me into it was not into it anymore. Thankfully I had many nerd friends who got the references and would watch whole series with me. But to be honest, it alienated some of my very close friends. Talking about it now, we laugh, but back then it actually drove a big wedge between us that I was unaware of.

“You were obsessed,” one of my good friends would say with a nostalgic chuckle. “All you ever fucking talked about was new episodes, or bishounen. Remember you would all fight over who owned which guy?”

“Thank god you got over that,” my other friend agreed. “It was hard to talk to you sometimes because that was all you were interested in.”

This is surreal for me to hear. I don’t remember being solely focused on anime: I loved classic rock, I was in the marching band, I loved reading, I liked geeky movies. I was that weird Hot Topic nerd in high school, for sure (or I wanted to be, at least) but...was anime really all I talked about?

“YES,” everyone would confirm emphatically.

It’s a surreal experience to finally be in Tokyo after this anime phase has passed. However, it’s not exactly a phase - I watched a series once I came here because I felt compelled to do so. I mean, here I am in Japan, am I really not going to watch what interested me in the culture in the first place? However, watching it as a 27 year old woman, compared to watching it as my 13 year- old self, was a strange experience I was not expecting.

….how did I never notice the blatant sexism?

I’m planning a future post about the series that I watched, but let’s talk about anime in general. I can think of some strong female characters, for sure, but to be honest, in most animes, the female characters are there to look cute, wear tiny outfits that show off their prepubescent bodies, or to offer panty shots or nosebleeds for the male characters (side note: apparently the nose bleed symbolizes a rush of blood to the penis, but animes are not allowed to show erections or else they are considered hentai, or porn. So instead, when a guy is turned on, blood shoots out his nose in a ridiculously dramatic way). Often they’re seen fretting over the food they prepare for their friends, something that is very real in Japanese culture: women are praised when they are able to assemble the perfect bento box. Their strong characteristics are always love and devotion to their friends or a significant other. But can’t a woman be a strong character in ways that do not involve feelings towards others? Why can’t a female character have admirable qualities that are not related to their relationship to other people? We often see the loner type expressed in cold men, wayward samurai who don’t know how to love or who are jaded by war...but rarely do we see women portrayed this way. They are often the loving characters, the characters who are always sorry, gomen nasai, blushing while they spill drops of tea on the table, as though this is the worst thing in the world.

However, there are also many strong female characters in anime, and their strengths are independent of their relationships with others. Some that come to mind are Princess Mononoke, Rei from Evangelion, Winry from FullMetal Alchemist, and Tsunade from Naruto, the first female leader of the ninja village. If you’ve got some other great suggestions, because I know these women exist in anime, then please comment!

But flat female characters aside, let’s talk about the real focus of all of these women: of course, their bodies. The girls who are being sexed up are children, fourteen or fifteen years old. However, their bodies are often drawn much more maturely, with large jiggling breasts and ample asses that are disproportionate to the rest of their bodies.

Listen internet: I walk through Shinjuku and Ikebukuro weekly, and Japanese women do not look like that. The women’s bras here are most often the size of training bras in America. The average body time is very slim with little to no curves, and practically no body fat. As a result: no jiggling ass, no jiggling breasts. (Although I will admit, the random Tokyo breezes that lift girls’ skirts are real - I’ve gotten hit with sudden gusts and flashed the whole sidewalk unintentionally many times…)

And yet, these portrayals of Japanese women are the most popular references in America. I imagine that many tourists would be shocked to see that average Japanese women rarely wear skirts at thigh length, hardly ever show their shoulders even in the summertime, and especially do not show cleavage. Many women wear turtlenecks or long sleeve shirts under their spaghetti string dresses, because the dress alone is considered inappropriate unless you are going to the club. Of course I see young people dressed sexy, in stiletto shoes with thigh tight dresses, their hair dyed a bright strawberry blond; or girls rocking crop tops and baggy pants (currently a popular fashion trend in Japan). In America, the common sex symbol is cleavage; in Japan, it’s legs. I always wondered why the Sailor Scout’s legs were so long and slim, but it makes sense now - the sex appeal. Considering that women often wear baggy pants, it makes sense that showing a lot of leg is considered sexual.

But the most infuriating, most uncomfortable part of this realization thus far, for me, has been maid cafes.

My inner teenager was so excited to go to Akihabara, to see the anime mecca of the world. I felt like I had been waiting to see a place like this since the 8th grade. And that’s just it - in the 8th grade I would have died a thousand deaths to walk through the stories of anime stores, to look at all of the ￥10,000 figurines, to try and collect a new series. But as an old fart….oh sweet Jesus.

The lights. The sounds. The constant assault of everything...oh my god, I wanted to leave as soon as I got out of the subway. In every inch of Akihabara, there is something happening, and it’s flashy, high-pitched, and often wearing an impossibly short skirt. There were some areas where two pop songs were on full blast at the same time, and my brain started to cry. Someone is always shouting Japanese from a loudspeaker, advertising a new band; anime characters are clashing swords together in an over dramatic final duel on a giant gumbo screen; and along the sidewalks, women in their 20’s are dressed as though they are 15, handing out flyers to the maid cafe.

Maid cafes are a well known part of Japanese pop culture. Basically, you pay hourly to sit in a cafe and order adorable food shaped like cute animals that is served to you by girls in adorable outfits. The amount of frill that laces these dresses is no joke:

Admittedly, I totally want an ice cream shaped like a lion. I mean come on, that shit’s adorable. But what’s not adorable is the whole maid culture: these women are not 15, they’re nearly my age, but because of their slim bodies, they are able to pass off as teenagers. And the voices...dear lord. There is no way that someone naturally speaks in such a high-pitched tone. Although women speaking in a high-pitch is considered part of an overall business tone (American women do it too, I’ve noticed, just not as high), the pitch of this speech is...unnatural. As though each were a doll that are speaking because you squeezed their hand or pressed the sticker on their chest.

Standing outside, watching these women advertise with plastic painful smiles on their faces, I realized something I never considered before: all of these women are being forced to act like they are 15 years old because it’s what male customers want. They don’t want to order a call girl, a fully grown woman - they want a girl who is pure, who acts innocent and uncertain, and chances are this kind of girl would be an inexperienced teenager.

It gets better: you can get trading cards.

Now as far as I know, some maid cafes have cartoon trading cards, and others promote certain maid cafe animes. However, you can also get trading cards of the women that work there - with fake names, fake interests that are often devoid of any intelligence or personality, and of course, a fake teen age. There are men who keep these in binders like Pokemon cards, and who wait hours at a cafe to be served by their favorite girl - a very expensive pass time, as customers pay by the hour and, during a rush, have their stay limited by the cafe. These cards can also be signed and autographed photos of the customer with their favorite maid, who will sign it with a practiced autograph of a fake name usually surrounded by cute little hearts, or an animal face.

Maybe I’m being a Debbie Downer, or I have irrational expectations for something that is supposed to be sweet and innocent. But to me, there is something very disturbing about a woman applying for a job where she must act ten years younger, speak in a consistent, unrealistically cheerful tone, and autograph photos of herself with a fake name. Why don’t these men go out and meet real women, with real names and interests? Why do they only feel safe through a simulation of leaching on teenage girls? And why are they allowed to wait hours until their favorite maid comes to work? Stalking is a huge problem in Japan, and I feel this kind of situation is a golden opportunity for a predator to find it’s prey. However, I haven’t been able to find any evidence or proof that the popularity of maid cafes has led to an increase in stalking in Japan.

Has anyone had a positive experience at a maid cafe? Has anyone ever felt uncomfortable going to one? Please share your experiences below - this is only what I’ve seen and how I’ve felt, so I’m curious about other people’s opinions.

Thanks for reading! This whole blog will not be posts like this, I just wanted to get this off my chest (no pun intended).

Articles you may find interesting on this topic:

https://japantoday.com/category/features/lifestyle/the-past-present-and-future-of-maid-cafes

https://uncorneredmarket.com/japan-maid-cafe/

Trigger warning for this article about stalking and domestic abuse:

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/10/national/social-issues/japan-waking-menace-stalking/#.WTZ46VV97rc

Disclaimer: I don’t think you’re a pervert/creep if you’ve gone to a maid cafe! I feel like I should go at least once before leaving Tokyo, because it’s such a well known staple of attraction. But...I can’t shake the feeling that I’m contributing to something that is really detrimental to young Japanese girls.

(Pictures are not mine, but I plan on using my own in the future.)

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japanjazz-blog · 8 years ago

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Why Jazz?

That’s a legitimate question that has a few different answers, one of which is, unashamedly, alliteration. But there are deeper reasons!

In the streets of Ikebukuro, jazz plays over the speakers along the sidewalk. It may just be happening now during winter, but I hope it doesn’t stop. This gives the hustle of the city a cinematic feeling, and it’s a welcome reprieve to focus on the melodies instead of the constant noise that surrounds you in Tokyo. It seems to never sleep, although businesses close around 10pm on the weekends (22:00 in Japan Standard Time).

Right now, there is Jazz playing in this Starbucks in Ikebukuro, a part of Tokyo. High school students take selfies as they walk, grinning and laughing behind their white paper masks. Teens text and adjust their headphones as the wind <I>(kaze)</I> bellows, blowing around the women’s perfectly placed hair. My back is slick with sweat in this gorgeous 60F weather, but for the Japanese it is still winter, and the wind is biting. Being from Boston, this is a day to maybe walk the beach with the dog, but many Japanese are still wearing hats and earmuffs. I am bracing myself for the summer.

While I am waiting on a work visa, and waiting to get paid (not the best situation, I assure you), I’ve been thinking of ways to occupy my time cheaply. A suggestion from a friend led me to Kids on the Slope, an anime by Shinichirō Watanabe, the director of Cowboy Beebop. My interest in anime has faded greatly, and visiting Japan contributed to that a little (more on that later). However, this anime, even with it’s many issues and the over the top drama...there was something about it. Not to mention the jazz! The musical pieces were actually performed and recorded by Yokko Kanno, also a musician behind the Cowboy Beebop soundtrack (an amazing one too, by the way). The music is magical, and really elevates the often over the top story line into a heartwarming plot about the power of music, and how it can bridge the gap of poverty and bring people together regardless of their social standing. Since each episode is named after a famous jazz tune, there are many playlists online dedicated to this show. I’ll plan on posting them in the future.

Jazz is one of my favorite music genres - and I love all kinds of music! Rock, indie/folk, hip hop, R&B, funk, pop - you name it, I probably like some artists from the genre. But jazz...jazz is one of those that really connects with me. The way it feels when I leave my job, after dreaming about living in Tokyo for half of my life, with the lights and the sounds of the street whizzing around and past and up into the night sky...that’s Japan Jazz.

Welcome to my record of this crazy Asian adventure.

#jazz #japan #tokyo #kids on the slope #travel

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